In automatic clothes washers, the system is designed to process only fabric materials; however, other foreign objects make their way into the wash chamber including buttons, coins, keys, stones, and other small objects. These foreign objects may interfere with the proper operation of the clothes washer, such as interfering with proper liquid flow through a pump or pumps used for recirculation and draining.
Prior clothes washers have addressed the problem by collecting and holding foreign objects, which may cause a number of problems. Collective materials may eventually reduce flow rates by obstructing water flow paths. Some collected materials deteriorate with time and may be redistributed on clothing or cause odor. Other types of materials may add to the accumulation process by causing materials to accumulate that might otherwise be pumped down the drain.